Method of and apparatus for forming precision wound yarn packages



Jan. 3, 1956 R. J. CLARKSON 2,729,051

METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR FORMING PRECISION WOUND YARN PACKAGES llSheets-Sheet 1 Filed June 20, 1952 1/7 w w 6 my /7 +P /Z7 M m w M w //7w m #0 M7 INVENTOR.

fflAZ/F/e/(l/f/VJM BY 5?;5: l 1,. mam

' ATTORNEY Jan. 3, 1956 R. J. CLARKSON 2,729,051

METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR FORMING PRECISION WOUND YARN PACKAGES FiledJune 20, 1952 ll Sheets-Sheet 2 ATTORNEY Jan. 3, 1956 R, J. CLARKSON2,729,051

METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR FORMING PRECISION WOUND YARN PACKAGES FiledJune 20, 1952 ll Sheets-Sheet 4 4/ 7' 4 0 ATTORNEY Jan. 3, 1956 R. J.CLARKSON METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR FORMING PRECISION WOUND YARNPACKAGES ll Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed June 20, 1952 ATTORNEY Jan. 3, 1956 R.J. CLARKSON 2,729,051

METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR FORMING PRECISION WOUND YARN PACKAGES FiledJune 20, 1952 ll Sheets-Sheet 6 PM (a. I- M ATTORNEY Jan. 3, 1956 R. J.CLARKSON 2,729,051

METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR F0 NG PRECISION WOUND YARN PACKAGE FiledJune 20, 1.952 11 Sheets-Sheet 7 6M '9: (VIM/H14 ATTORNEY Jan. 3, 1956R. J. CLARKSON METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR FORMING PRECISION WOUND YARNPACKAGES ll Sheets-Sheet 8 Filed June 20, 1952 M! llllllllll" INVENTOR.X05617 KZJAAJ /V um WM .A T TORNB Y Jan. 3, 1956 R. J. CLARKSON2,729,051

METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR FORMING PRECISION WOUND YARN PACKAGES FiledJune 20, 1952 ll Sheets-Sheet 9 Egi 2.3

INVENTOR. #0661"? J (ll/176M 82AM? Mada A TIZ'OBNEY Jan. 3, 1956 R. J.CLARKSON 2,729,051

METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR FORMING PRECISION WOUND YARN PACKAGES FiledJune 20, 1952 ll Sheets-Sheet 10 w 77 Z Z 2; 24/

IN V EN TOR. #0567? 7' 1/ 6' 1/4/51 J04 um e2 a h A1 TORNEY 11Sheets-Sheet 11 Jan. 3, 1956 R. J. CLARKSON METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FORFORMING PRECISION WOUND YARN PACKAGES Filed June 20, 1952 United StatesPatent METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR FORMING PRECISION WOUND YARN PACKAGESRobert J. Clarkson,.Winnsboro, S. C., assignor to United States RubberCompany, New York, N. Y., a corporation of New Jersey Application June20, 1952, Serial No. 294,675

23 Claims. (Cl. 57-583) The present invention relates to a method of andapparatus for producing a compact, uniform precision wound package, thatis preferably cylindrical in shape and is wound on a cylindrical tube.Such a package packs well for shipment in containers and provides amaximum amount of yarn in a package of a given size. The precisionwinder of the present invention may be employed to wind various sizesand types of thread, yarn, cord and similar strand materials,hereinafter usually referred to as yarn into a package.

The term precision winder is herein applied to apparatus employed towind yarn or cord packages in which the yarn or cord is laid side byside uniformly to a high degree and without appreciable variation in thespacing of the yarns as the package increases in size. In this respectthey are very different from what are known as random winders in whichthe spacing of the yarns disposed side by side varies greatly as thepackage increases in size. In the precision winder of the presentinvention, and in those employed heretofore, the lay is slightly closerfor the small package than for the large package.

Precision winders as constructed heretofore have been iade to draw thestrand to be wound from a let-off package so that it will unwindtherefrom at the speed at which it is pulled forward by the precisionwinding takeup package. Such prior precision winders are not adapted towind strands that are supplied to the precision winder at a constantdelivery speed. Furthermore such prior precision winders usually tookthe form of a small complete machine adapted to wind only one precisionpackage per machine, with the result that such winders were expensive topurchase and operate, on the basis of cost per package wound, and tookup considerable floor space.

The present invention contemplates a precision winder which is sodesigned that a single winding machine may be constructed to wind 48 ormore packages simultaneously. Furthermore the precision winder of thepresent invention is adapted to wind strands supplied thereto underconstant delivery speed, and to this end is provided with automaticmechanism controlled by the tension of a running yarn to correlate thespeed of the precision winders to the speed at which one yarn is beingsupplied from some other cooperating textile equipment. As a result ofthese features this new precision winder will serve to reduce the costof forming precision wound packages, and it is capable of eliminatingcertain textile operations in producing yarns or cords, in that thepresent precision winder may be employed to wind a ply-yarn or cord, asproduced, into a precision package.

Since the precision winder of the present invention is adapted to wind anumber of precision packages simultaneously, it will take up less floorspace and is less expensive to purchase and operate than would be singleprecision winders when employed in sutficient numbers to have the samedaily output as the present multiple precision winder. Furthermore thepresent precision winder may, as above stated, he used in combinationwith some other textile equipment andoperate to wind the yarn or cordsupplied thereto at the particular speed it is supplied by the precedingtextile equipment that is performing some operation on the yarn suppliedto the precision winder.

The precision winder of the present invention, in a modified form, mayalso be employed as re-Winding textile equipment having a number ofcooperating precision winding spindles each of which draws the strand itis Winding forward from a let-oft package, to thereby form precisionwound packages of any desired size.

In any precision winder it appears necessary to maintain a definite andconstant ratio between the rotation of the package supporting spindlefor the precision package and the traverse mechanism for laying the yarnon such package, so that the number of spiral windings produced by thetraverse mechanism as it travels back or forth lengthwise of the packagewill remain the same as the package grows in size. In such aconstruction, if the package spindle rotates at a constant speedthroughout the winding operation, the strand will be wound faster andfaster on the package as it increases in diameter. Therefore if aprecision winder is to receive the strand it is winding at a constantdelivery rate, as contemplated by the present invention, it is necessaryto provide means whereby the spindle speed will decrease as the packagegrows in size, and this must be done without changing the ratio betweenthe spindle speed and traverse mechanism.

Precision winders as constructed heretofore have been provided withvarious types of control means for reducing the package spindle speed asthe package increased in size, but these prior precision winders wereconstructed to wind only one package per machine, and as a result theseprecision winders were expensive.

An important feature of the present invention resides in a precisionwinding machine which is adapted to wind a large number of packagessimultaneously and to employ one traverse cam for operating the traverseguide for all packages, to thereby greatly reduce the cost of theprecision winder per winding package.

Another feature of the present invention resides in mechanism foraccurately controlling the yarn winding speed at which the yarn is woundon the precision package, from the start to the finish of the windingoperation. This accurate control of the winding speed makes it possibleto vary the surface speed of the winding package at any predeterminedrate as the package grows in size. It also makes it possible to keepthis winding speed constant when desired, so that it will Wind up theyarn at the exact speed at which it is supplied from a yarn plying orother textile machine. It also makes it possible to gradually increasethe speed at which the yarn is wound on the package as the packageincreases in size. This control of the speed at which the yarn is woundon the precision package may be secured, in accordance with the presentinvention, by utilizing the tension of the yarn as it approaches theprecision Winder to thereby control the surface speed of the packagewhich is being wound, or if desired the growth in the size of thepackage maybe employed to control the speed at which the yarn is wounthereupon.

The speed at which the yarn is wound on the precision package ispreferably controlled, in accordance with the present invention, bypower driving the package supporting spindle and operating the traversemechanism at a definite fixed ratio to this spindle speed. The spindleand traverse preferably are geared together at a carefully predeterminedratio, When the package supporting spindle is power driven at a uniformspeed, it will Wind yarn on the package at an increasing speed as thepackage increases in diameter. In order to adapt the present machine toprecision Wind yarn supplied thereto at a constant delivery rate, it isnecessary to provide means whereby the spindle speed may decrease as thepackage grows in size, and also to provide means for controlling thisdecrease in winding speed.

This control of winding speed for the precision package is secured, inaccordance with an important feature of the present invention, by powerdriving the winding spindle through a slip clutch that tends to drivethe package at a speed slightly in excess of the constant delivery speedof the yarn supplied thereto, and the driving of the package through itsspindle is slowed down and con trolled by employing a governing drumthat is in frictional contact with the surface of the package. Thisgoverning drum is driven at a controlled speed to thereby control therate at which the yarn is wound on the precision package. Suchcontrolled speed may be governed by the gradual increase in size of thepackage, or it may be governed by the tension of the running yarnsupplied to a single precision package. The present inventioncontemplates that all precision packages of the machine of the presentinvention will operate at the same speed throughout the windingoperation, and that the initial winding of all packages will startsimultaneously, and the finishing winding of all packages of a machinewill terminate simultaneously. This makes possible the control of theWinding speed for all precision packages of a machine from a singlerunning yarn or from the gradual increase in size of a single precisionpackage, and the dofiing of all packages during one stoppage of themachine.

In order that the winding speed of each precision package may becontrolled by its governing roll, an adjustable slip clutch is providedbetween the driving spindle for the precision packages and the mainsource of power, and this slip clutch should be so adjusted that whileit tends to overdrive the packages, very little slippage will occurbetween the surface of the governing drum and the surface of the packageit engages.

Another important feature of the present invention resides in theconstruction whereby a number of package supporting tubes are mounted inaxial alignment and are driven one tube from the other through a singledriving shaft. In order to employ this axial alignment of the packages,and to doff any one of the axial aligned tubes, without disturbing thewinding position of the other aligned tubes, there are employed alignedstub shafts located between the packages and which have a telescopicconstruction, whereby the length of such a stub shaft may be retractedsufficiently to disengage its end from driving engagement with anadjacent package supporting tube. Such stub shaft preferably has asquare or other non-circular tapered end that can be forced into thehollow tube so that such stub shaft will support the adjacent ends oftwo package tubes and drive one tube from the other. Each such stubshaft is provided with a manually operable lever adapted to retract andextend one end of the telescopic stub shaft to thereby engage anddisengage its tapered end with a package tube.

The precision winding machine contemplated by the present invention maybe employed for many purposes but it is particularly well adapted forwinding simultaneously a large number of heavy yarns such as arecommonly called tire cords, or other heavy yarns used in industrialfields, and to wind such yarn into large precision packages that mayweigh 20 pounds or more for shipment to the point of use. The precisionwinding apparatus of the present invention was designed moreparticularly for operation in combination with machines of the typedisclosed in my Patent No. 2,503,242 for producing highly uniform, heavytwo-ply yarn employed as tire cord. When the precision winder of thepresent invention is associated with a yarn or cord former such asdisclosed in said patent, the tension of one-ply yarn being supplied bythe cord former is or may be utilized to control the winding speed ofall of the precision packages of a machine.

The above and other features of the present invention and method ofcarrying out the invention will be further understood from the followingdescription when read in connection with the accompanying drawings;wherein Fig. l is a side elevation of a four unit machine constructed inaccordance with the present invention;

Fig. 2 is an end view of the machine of Fig. 1 looking at the left handend of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a horizontal sectional view taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4, on a larger scale, is a sectional view of a telescopic stubshaft adapted to support the ends of adjacent yarn tubes and to driveone tube from the other;

Fig. 5 is an end view of parts shown in Fig. 4;

Fig. 6, on a larger scale, is a vertical sectional view through one ofthe ply-yarn forming spindles and associated parts shown in Figs. 1 and2;

Fig. 7 is a sectional view taken on the line 7-7 of Fig. 6;

Fig. 8 is a side elevation of the apparatus for supporting the innerpackage of a ply-yarn forming unit;

Fig. 9 is a sectional view taken on the line 9-9 of Fig. 8;

Fig. 10 is a side view with parts in section of traverse mechanism forguiding the ply-yarn from a forming unit to a precision package;

Fig. 11 is a side view with parts in section of the outer of the twopackages that supply yarn to the ply-yarn forming spindle;

Fig. 12 is a front view of parts shown in Fig. 10;

Figs. 13, 14, 15 and 16 are detailed views showing features of thetraverse mechanism illustrated in Fig. 10;

Fig. 17 is a side elevation of pawl and ratchet mechanism that controlsthe variable speed drive which governs the speed of rotation of theprecision packages;

Fig. 18 is a top plan view with parts in section of the pawl and ratchetshown in Fig. 17;

Fig. 19 is a horizontal sectional view through an adjustable frictiondriving clutch;

Fig. 20 is a vertical side view with parts in section of apparatus forautomatically controlling the size of the ballooning outer yarn;

Fig. 21 is a horizontal view with parts in section showing thedisposition of a driving motor and the driving belts for operating fourply-yarn forming units;

Fig. 22 is a top plan view of a precision wound pack age showing theyarn guiding bullet of the traverse mechanism associated therewith;

Fig. 23 is a more or less diagrammatic view of the precision woundpackage illustrating how the helical winding angle decreases as thepackage increases in size;

Fig. 24 is a side view with parts broken away of a modified machine,having free turning let-off packages for supplying yarn to the precisionpackages; this view is a view of the right side of Fig. 25; and

Fig. 25 is an end view with parts broken away and is a view of the lefthand end of Fig. 24.

Figs. 1 to 23 inclusive are directed to the precision winder of thepresent invention as employed in combinationwith a constant deliveryply-yarn forming machine, of the type disclosed in my above citedpatent. This combination machine is shown as having only four plyyarnforming units, two disposed at one side of the machine and two at theother side, and below these units are provided four precision windersfor winding the plyyarn from each unit into a large precision package.It is desired to point out however that in factory use the machine shownin Fig. l of the drawing would preferably be many times the length hereshown, and might be provided with twenty, thirty or more ply-yarnforming units at each side of the machine.

Figs. 24 and 25 disclose a modification of the present invention, andshow the precision winder in the form of a multiple rewinding machineadapted to draw yarns forward from a number of independently supportedlet-off packages to wind such yarns into separate precision packages.

Now referring more particularly to Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawings whereinthere is shown apparatus disclosed at the upper portion of the machinefor plying together two singles yarns supplied from two separatepackages, these singles yarns are united to form a finished ply-yarnthat is wound into a precision package by the mechanism disposed at thelower portion of such machine. The machine shown in Figs. 1 and 2 hasthe end frames and 11. These end frames are connected by thelongitudinally extending beams, bars and rods 12, 13 and 14respectively. The upper portion of the machine supported by the beams 12has extending upwardly therefrom the vertical post 15 adapted to supportyarn guiding means to be described. The mechanism forming the four unitsdisposed at the upper portion of the machine operates to form fourseparate ply-yarns. This mechanism is driven by the upper electric motor16. All of the mechanism for forming the precision wound packages isdriven by the lower motor 17.

The four ply-yarn forming units are substantially identical inconstruction and operation, so that a description of one will suti'lcefor all four. Furthermore the construction and operation of eachot'these units is fundamentally similar to that shown, described andclaimed in my patent above cited. Each ply yarn forming unit, as shown,has an upper yarn supply package A which is called the inner package,and the lower yarn supply package B which is called the outer package.The yarns supplied by these two packages are united to form the ply-yarnc, and they are plied together by revolving the yarn b from the outerpackage B in the form of a balloon about the inner package A. The mannerin which these two yarns are united to form a ply-yarn c is best shownin Fig. 6 of the drawing. In order to produce the plyyarn c it isnecessary tosupport the inner package A so that the yarn b from theouter package can be revolved as a balloon about the package A. Toaccomplish this it is necessary to support the package A by a hollowrotating spindle which serves to form the balloon b and wrap the yarns aand b together to form the ply-yarn c.

In order to make the ply-yarn c so that it is highly uniform as tostrength and twists per inch, it is important that equal lengths of thesingle yarns a and b shall lie in any selected length of the ply-yarn c,and to secure this result it is highly important to provide means forpositively delivering equal lengths of the yarns a and b to the yarnplying point. This is accomplished as herein shown, and as stressed inthe above mentioned patent, by employing means for positively feedingforward equal lengths of the strands a and b to the juncture where theyare plied together. This is done by employing positively driven rollsthat are operated in time relation with the rotation of the hollowply-yarn forming spindle, to thereby meter or advance equal lengths ofthe yarns a and b to the plyforming point. Means for accomplishing thiswill now be described.

Inner package The package A which may be called the upper or innerpackage may be formed of a coarse low twist or zero twist yarn that iswound upon a supporting tube 18 which fits tightly upon a taperedsupporting member 19, best shown in Fig. 6. This member 19 is rotatablymounted on the upright spindle 20. The lower end of this spindle 26) isrigidly secured in a supporting bracket 21. The package supportingmember 19 has rigidly secured thereto by screws 22 the horizontallyextending disk 23 and resting thereupon is the cushioning material 24,so that when a yarn package A is in its operating position it will restupon this cushion 24 as shown in Fig. 6. The arrangement is such that asthe yarn a is drawn off the package A this package and its support 19can rotate relatively to the supporting shaft 20, but the rate at whichsuch package rotates can be retarded as desired by employinganon-rotating brake ring 25, the upper face of which engages, withvarying pressure, a ring 26 secured by screws it is unwound therefrom,it is found desirable to provide around such package a squirrel-cagelike guard comprising the upright posts 29 supported by a horizontaldisk 30 that is rigidly secured to a hollow casing 31 that supports thebracket 21. The upper ends of the posts 29 are secured to a curvedmember 32. The arrangement is such that as the yarn a is unwound fromits package it passes around several bars 29 and then passes part wayaround a pulley 33 supported by a bracket 34. The yarn a upon leavingthe guide pulley 33 passes downwardly about a floating pulley 35, (seeFig. 6) supported by a rocking lever 36 that is pivotally secured to thecasing 31 by a pivot pin 37. The opposite end of this lever 36 ispositioned to press upwardly against the lower end of the brake-applyingpin 23 slida'oly supported by the casing 31. The yarn a passes from thefloating pulley 35 upwardly and around a grooved pulley 38 rotatablysupported from the disk 34 This lever 36 is continuously urged towardsthe brake-applying position by an adjustable coiled spring 39. The yarna upon leaving pulley 38 passes to positive feed means comprising thelaterally spaced feed rolls 40 and 41 (see Figs. 1, 2 and 7) disposed atone side of the hollow casing 31. The roll 40 is rotatably supported byits shaft 42 which is positively driven by a gear 43. The other roll 41which is an idler roll is supported by a horizontally extending shaft42. These rolls 40 and 41 are disposed at a slight angle to each otheras shown in Fig. 7. The purpose of this is to cause the successivewindings of the yarn a passing around these laterally spaced rolls 4t]and 41 to spread out from each other as shown. The function of these tworolls is to positively pull the yarn a forward from its source of supplyat a rate that bears a definite ratio to the speed of rotation of theyarn plying spindle to be described. In order to decrease any tendencyof the yarn a to slip about the rolls 40 and 41 a spring pressed idlerroll 44 is preferably provided to press against the roll 40. The yarn aafter passing several times around the laterally spaced rolls 40, 41,passes around a pulley 45 (see Fig. 7) supported by a bracket 46 securedto the casing 31. This yarn then passes inwardly through a hole 47formed in the casing 31 to the central axis of this casing, to passaround a grooved roller 48 rotatably supported in the bracket 21 by apin 49. The yarn a then passes downwardly at the center of a rotatinghollow spindle, to be described.

The hollow casing 31 and parts carried thereby, are so supported thatthe ballooning outer yarn b can revolve rapidly about the package A andthe means for supporting this package. Therefore the casing 31 ismounted by means of spaced bearings 50 and 51 upon a hollow power drivenspindle 52 so that this spindle can rotate without rotating the casing31. The lower portion of this spindle is journaled in a fixed bearingcasing 53 which is rigidly supported by the structure 12 of the machineframe. The lower end of the hollow spindle 52 extends downwardly throughthis casing 53 to receive a driving pulley 54 (see Fig. 8) adapted to bedriven by a belt 55 from the above mentioned motor 16. The hollowspindle -52 has rigidly secured to the upper portion thereof a wormsleeve 56 with which the worm gear 43 meshes, and in order to keep thesegears lubricated, an idler gear 57 is preferably provided, that rotatesin an oil bath in the lower portion of the casing 31. As a result of thecon struction just described the hollow spindle 52 can be rapidlyrotated in the casing 31 without causing this casing to rotate, and therotation of this spindle and the worm and gears, just mentioned, drivethe roll to positively pull the yarn a forward from its source ofsupply, so that it can pass downwardly within the hollow spindle 52 to aforming die 58 which determines the point at which the yarns a and b areunited and wound together to form the ply-yarn 0.

Outer package Having described the path of the inner yarn a from itssupply package A to the forming die 58, the path of the outer yarn bwill now be described.

The yarn package B wound on the cone 59 is shown in Fig. 11 as supportedby a fixed bracket 66 that extends outwardly in an inclined directionfrom a bar 13 of the machine, and this bracket rotatably supports aspindle 61 on which the package B is mounted. The location of thisspindle 61 is such that it is easy to place the package B thereon. Thespindle 61 is similar to the package supporting member 19 abovedescribed and is rotatably supported by the bracket 69 so that thepackage B may rotate as the yarn b is unwound therefrom. The package Bis partly surrounded by a squirrel cage comprising a supporting member62 rigidly attached to the bracket and having extending at right anglestherefrom the spaced bars 63, the opposite ends of which are attached tothe curved member 64. The arrangement is such that as the yarn b unwindsfrom the package B it passes around several of the bars 63 and then to aguide pulley 65 supported by a bar 63. This yarn then passes to brakingmeans comprising a lever 66 that is pivotally supported at 67 upon thebracket 60. The outer end of this lever 66 is provided with a groovedroller about which the yarn b is looped. It then passes around a pulley62' supported from the member 62, and then passes to power driven takeup means, to be described. The action of the brake-applying lever 66 israther similar to that of the brake-applying lever 36 above described,the arrangement being such that if the yarn b tends to become slack thebrake lever 66 will press upon the base of the spindle 61 to retard therotation of the package B, and as the tension upon the yarn b increasesthis braking action will be reduced.

The yarn b is unwound from the package B at the same rate at which theyarn a is unwound from the package A. This is accomplished by causingthe yarn b as it leaves the pulley 63 to pass several times around theyarn advancing rolls 69 and 79 which are well shown in Figs. 8, 9 and1].. These two rolls are supported at a slight inclination to each otherto cause the yarn runs to spread out from each other as they passrepeatedly around these rolls, and in order to reduce any tendency ofthe yarn to slip upon these rolls it is desirable to provide anauxiliary roller 7 supported by a spring actuated arm 72, so that thisroller continually presses against the yarn runs passing around the roll76. As will be seen from Fig. 9 the upper roll 70 is rigidly secured toa shaft 73 journaled in fixed brackets 74 and 75 of the machine frame,and the opposite end of this shaft is provided with a sprocket '76 thatis driven by the sprocket chain '77. The lower roll 69 may be similarlydriven by a sprocket '78. After the yarn b is positively pulled forwardfrom its supply package 3 by the rolls 70 it passes around the pulley'79 (Fig. 8), and then upwardly around a second pulley 30 supported by ahorizontally extending arm 81 secured to the upper end of the post 15.The yarn passes from the pulley 30 about a third pulley 82 disposedabove the central axis of the package A to pass downwardly from thispulley, through balloon controlling means, to be described, to form aballoon that clears the squirrel cage surrounding the package A.

The yarn b is revolved as a balloon rapidly around the package A to wrapthe yarns a and b together. This which is free running and is isaccomplished by rigidly securing to the rotating hollow spindle 52 theannular bracket 83 which carries a non-metallic disc 84 that is providedwith a thread guiding eyelet 85 adjacent its outer periphery. The yarn bpasses through this eyelet in a downward direction as best shown in Fig.6. This yarn extends from the eyelet 85 through an inclinedhole 86 inthe bracket 83 and spindle 52, to meet the downwardly extending yarn aat a point directly above the forming die 58. The arrangement is suchthat as the shaft 52 is rapidly rotated it causes the yarn b to balloonas shown and wrap around the downwardly passing yarn a. Since the yarnsa and b are positively pulled forward from their sources of supply atthe same speed, these two yarns will be wrapped together adjacent theforming die as shown in Fig. 6 to produce the highly uniform ply-yarn c.

it will be understood from the foregoing that neither package A nor Brotates in the operation of the present machine, more than is necessaryto unwind the yarns a and b from their respective packages. The packageA and associated parts are supported, as above stated, by the rapidlyrotating spindle 52. In order to prevent this rotating spindle fromturning the casing 31 and other parts which support the package A,magnets are preferably provided above and below the rapidly rotatingnonmetallic disc 84 so that the magnetic pull of one magnet on the otherwill prevent the casing 31 from rotating, and this is accomplishedwithout interfering with the revolving ballooning yarn b. The hollowcasing 31 is provided with outwardly extending portions 87 adapted tosupport the permanent upper magnets 88 (see Fig. 1) and below therevolving disc 84 are provided the lower magnets 89. The arrangement issuch that the magnetic pull between the upper and lower magnets preventsthe upper structure supported by the casing 31 and spindle 52 fromturning under normal operation. If, however, due to excessive frictionor other abnormal operation, the upper magnets 88 should turnappreciably relative to the lower magnets 89 so as to reduce themagnetic pull therebetween, one of the lower magnets which is pivotallysupported as shown at the right, side of the drawing in Fig. 1 will dropand operate an electric switch within the box 90 to stop the entiremachine. The yarn ad.- vancing rolls 40 and 41 for the yarn a and yarnadvancing rolls 69 and 70 for the yarn b operate to advance equallengths of these two yarns towards the plying point.

Ply yam take-up mechanism Having described the mechanism for supplyingmeasured lengths of the yarns a and b to the forming die 58 within thehollow rotating shaft 52, means for pulling the ply-yarn c produced inthis hollow shaft downwardly under controlled tension will now bedescribed. The plyyarn c does not rotate as it leaves the spindle 52.

The ply-yarn c passes downwardly centrally within the hollow shaft 52 toa pulley 91, see Fig. 10, mounted on a bracket 92 attached to thesupporting frame 13. After passing around this pulley it then loopsaround a pulley 93 mounted on an arm 94 of a rocking lever that ispivotally supported at 95 on the bracket 92, and this rocking lever hasthe relatively long upwardly extending arm 96 which carries at its upperend two slightly spaced pins adapted to receive the ply-yarn c betweenthem. The purpose of the arm 96 is to move the yarn c lengthwise oftapered pull rolls, shown in Fig. 10, to increase or decrease the speedat which this plyyarn is pulled forward and thereby control its tension.To accomplish this the rocking lever 94, 96 is continuously urged in onedirection by a coiled spring 97, the tension of which may be adjusted bythe wing nut 93. This spring continuously tends to pull the arm 94 thatcarries the pulley 93 in an upward direction. The tension of the yarn 0tends to pull this arm 94 in a downward direction, to cause the lever 96to move the yarn being wound about the tapered rolls shown in Fig. 10towards the smaller end of these rolls and 9 thus reduce the take-upspeed. If the tension of the yarn decreases the spring 97 will move thearm 96 towards the large ends of the take-up rolls to take the yarn upfaster. This rocking lever accurately controls the rate at which theply-yarn c is pulled forward as produced so as to maintain the tensionupon this yarn uniform.

The tapered rolls just referred to are well shown in Figs. 8, 9 and 10,and comprise an upper tapered roll 99 and a lower tapered roll 100 aboutwhich the yarn c is wound in a number of runs. The upper roll 99 issupported and rotated by a shaft 101 which has secured to its oppositeend the sprocket wheel 102 that is driven by the chain 77 abovementioned. The lowered tapered roll 100 may be similarly driven by thesprocket wheel 103. Power is imparted to this chain 77 by a worm gear104 which meshes with a worm 105 that is rigidly secured to the hollowcentral spindle 52 (see Figs. 8 and 9). This gear 104 is mounted uponand rigidly secured to a transversely extending shaft 106 which hassecured at one end asprocket wheel 107 and to its other end a roller108. Adjacent the sprocket 107 is supported an idler sprocket 109. Thechain 77 through the mechanism just described serves to positivelyrotate the rolls 69, '70, 99, 100 and it is driven from the rotatinghollow spindle 52. In order to reduce any tendency of the ply-yarn c toslip around the rolls 99, 100, a free running gravity roll 110 supportedby a swinging arm 111 is preferably provided, and the yarn 0 uponleaving the roll 99 passes around this roll 110 and then downwardlybetween it and the roll 108. 7 Should the control lever 96 swing throughan abnormally large arc in either direction, projections 112 earned bythe arm 94, see Fig. 12, will contact an electric switch 113 and stopthe entire machine.

Various means may employed for driving each of the ply-yarn producingunits constructed as above described. In the construction shown the fourunits are driven from the upper electric motor 16 as will be apparentfrom Fig. 2 when considered in connection with Fig. 21. The rotatingshaft of this motor extends downwardly from the lower end of the motorcasing and has secured thereto two pulleys 114 and 114 adapted to drivebelts 55 and 55'. One of these belts drives the two hollow spindles 52at one side of the machine and the other belt 55' drives the twospindles 52 at the other side of the machine as will be apparent fromFig. 21.

The mechanism so far described by reference numerals produces a ply-yarnc formed of the two single low twist or zero twist yarns a and b. Thefour units shown, or any other number of such units, built into a singlemachine are preferably all driven at the same speed, so that each unitwill produce a ply-yarn c at a uniform rate corresponding to the rate ofdelivery of the other ply-yarns being produced by such machine. The yarnc as produced is wound into a package, which preferably is a precisionwound package, and as above stated an important feature of the presentinvention relates to precision winding mechanism which is adapted toreceive yarn supplied at a constant speed from a number of units and towind the yarn from each unit of the machine into a precision woundpackage. Such precision winding equipment constructed in accordance withthe present invention will now be described.

Precision winding mechanism The power driven delivery rolls 99 and 100pull the ply-yarns 0 forward from the ply forming spindle 52 under asubstantial and uniform tension as above described. This yarn 0 passesdownwardly from the power driven roller 108 to a grooved guiding pulley13 supported from the bracket 13 of the machine frame, as shown in Fig.10. It then passes to traverse mechanism, to be described, and is thenwound into a precision package P formed by winding the yarn 0 onto atube or core 115 which is preferably a cylinder tube formed of heavy'paper in a well known manner, although the pre- 10 cision winder of thepresent invention can be employed to wind yarn on a conical shaped tube.Four yarn packages P are provided to receive the ply-yarn c from thefour above mentioned yarn producing units. These packages are shown asmounted at the lower portion of the machine where such relatively largepackages can be conveniently removed by a workman. The disposition ofthese packages P is well shown in Fig. 3 of the drawings, wherein itwill be seen that two packages are positioned at one side of the machineand two at the other side. It will also be seen from Fig. 3 that thepackages P at each side of the machine are disposed in axial alignment,so that the aligned packages are driven from a shaft designated by 116at one side of the machine and by 116' at the other side of the machine.

In order to support the packages P in axial alignment and drive them allfrom the same central shaft as herein contemplated, the yarn receivingtubes are employed to drive one from the other. The driving shaft 116and the yarn packages P which it supports are so mounted that this shaftand packages may move upwardly in the arc of a'circle as the packagesincrease in size. This upward movement is due to the fact that eachpackage rests upon a power driven drum, to be described, which operatesto control the package winding speed. The shaft 116 comprises aplurality of axial aligned shaft sections which have a telescopicconstruction so that a section can be contracted and extendedlongitudinally to facilitate the insertion of a paper tube 115 in itswinding position and its removal therefrom. The shaft 116' is similarlyconstructed. The various sections of the shaft 116 are journaled inbearing brackets 117 disposed at the outer end of the relatively longarms 118 which are pivotally mounted on a fixed central shaft 119 forrocking movement. This pivotal mounting permits the shafts 116 and 116to move upwardly in an arcuate path as the packages increase in size,and arcuate slots 118 and 118 are cut in the end frame 10 of the machineto permit the shafts 116 and 116 'to move in this manner. All of thisprecision winding mechanism is driven by the above mentioned electricmotor 17. This motor, through connections to be described, drives asprocket 120 (see Fig. 3) that rotates on a stub shaft 121 secured tothe machine frame 10, and this sprocket drives a second sprocket 122 anda third sprocket 123 secured together. The sprocket 123 drives a chain124 which rotates the shaft 116', and the sprocket 122 drives a chain125 which drives a gear 126. This gear drives a reversing gear 127secured to the shaft 116, the reversing gear 127 is employed to drivethe shaft 116 in the proper direction.

Each shaft 116 and 116' is provided at its inner end near the supportingbrackets 117 with a tapered four sided plug adapted to be forced into anend of a paper tube 115 so as to support and drive this tube. The shafts116 and 116 are, as above stated, formed of aligned sections indicatedby 128 and the construction of which is well illustrated in Fig. 4. Thisshaft section' 128 is mounted to turn in a bearing bracket 117 and has alongitudinally movable sleeve 129 adapted to be slid from its full lineposition of Fig. 4 to the dotted line position of this figure. Thislongitudinal movement is manually imparted to the sleeve 129 by securingthereto the laterally extending operating rod 130, which extendsoutwardly from such sleeve through a curved slot 130' formed in thebearing bracket 117. The arrangement is such that if the lever 130 isshifted from its full line position of Fig. 5 to its dotted lineposition it will impart a telescopic movement to the sleeve 129, toengage or disengage the squared end 131, disposed at the left in Fig. 4,with the tube 115. This squared end is rigidly secured to a hollow shaft132 journaled in the sleeve 129 and having the thrust bearing 133. Theconstruction is such that when a paper tube 115 is rotated by the shaft116, this tube in turn will rotate a hollow shaft 132 which is journaledin a sleeve 129 and has a squared end 131 forced into a tube 115. Thehollow shaft 132 has a square or other non-circular hole formedcentrally therethrough to slidably receive a shaft 134 that is journaledin a bearing 135 mounted at the right hand end of the bracket 117, and asquared plug 136 similar to the plug 131 is rigidly secured to the otherend of this shaft 134. The arrangement is such that when the hollowsleeve 132 is driven from a tube the shaft 134 will be driven so that itwill drive the paper tube 115 engaged by its squared end 136. As aresult of this tube supporting and driving construction, any tube can bemoved to or from its operating position in alignment with other tubes byoperating the rod to move a squared plug 131 into or out of firmgripping engagement with an end of such paper tube.

The means just described for driving the packages P will drive allaligned packages together, and tends to drive all these packages at aconstant speed, but since the packages increase in diameter as the yarnis wound thereupon, the yarn willl be wound on the packages faster andfaster as they increase in size. This however can not be permitted inthe pressure construction since the ply-yarn c is supplied to suchpackages at a uniform delivery speed. In order to control the speed atwhich the packages P are rotated so that the yarn c will be woundthereon at the uniform speed at which the ply-yarn is delivered to suchtake-up package, a slip drive is provided for driving the sprocket 120.This permits the axial speed at which the shafts 116 and 116' arerotated with their packages to be reduced as the packages increase insize.

This slip drive is secured in the construction shown by providing theoperating motor 17 with a sprocket 137 (see Fig. 2) that drives a chain138 adapted to drive a sprocket 139 rotatably mounted on a stub shaft140 attached to the machine frame 10, as best shown in Fig. 19. Mountedon this stub shaft 140 is the sleeve 141, and on this sleeve is mountedthe sprocket 139 which has secured to one face thereof a frictiondriving disc 142, and also mounted on this sleeve 141 is a rotatingmember comprising the integral sprockets 143 and 144 and the face plate145. Threaded on the outer end of the sleeve 141 is the manuallyadjustable nut 146 adapted to compress a spring 147 to thereby vaiy thefriction drive between the positively driven sprocket 139 and theassociated sprockets 143 and 144. The desired amount of friction driveis obtained by adjusting the nut 146. Sprocket 144 drive chain 148 thatdrives sprockets 120, 122 and 123 above described. Sprocket 143 driveschain 149 that drives a sprocket 150 provided to operate traversemechanism to be described. The purpose in providing sprockets 143 and144 as an integral construction is to make sure that a definite ratio ofoperation will be maintained at all times between the package drivingshafts 116 and 11.6 mechanism driven by the gear 150 throughout theprecision winding of the machine.

The precision wind, in order to form a firm package, directs the yarn onto a package with a pronounced helical angle, as shown in Figs. 1, 3, 22and 23 of the drawings, and as will be apparent from Fig. 23 thishelical angle decreases as the package increases in diameter, but thenumber of complete helical windings around the package throughout itslength remains the same during the winding operation. in starting towind the ply-yarn c on the paper tubes 115, it is desirable to wind afew revolutions on the package with very slight traverse to anchor thisleading end of the yarn to the package. This is readily done bytemporarily reducing the traverse movement so as to lay the coils closetogether. As soon as this is done the traverse mechanism is restored toits high traverse precision wind position. To provide for this initialclosely placed winding the change gear mechanism shown in Fig. 2 of thedrawings is provided. This mechanism is housed in the gear casing 151and comprises manually shiftable change and the traverse gears of wellknown construction. The sprocket 150 drives a shaft 152 to which aresecured a large gear and a small gear adapted to be engaged by one orthe other of a pair of connected shiftable gears 153 mounted on theshaft 154. These shiftable gears are adapted to drive the shaft 154 at aslow or a high speed depending upon the position to which the gears 153are shifted by the manually operable lever 155. To the upper end of theshaft 154 is rigidly secured a large traversing cam 156 adapted tooperate the traversing mechanism for all of the packages P being wound.

Precision traversing mechanism The traversing cam 156, as will be seenfrom Fig. 3 is a slotted cam having the cam slot 157. In this slotprojects a pin 158. Since the packages P may be a foot or more inlength, a long traverse movement is required. This long traverse issecured in the construction shown by employing connecting links arrangedto impart a long straight-line travel to a traversing frame to bedescribed. These links, which are best shown in Fig. 3, comprise thelinks 159 and 161 each of which has an end pivotally secured at 161 to arigid projection extending outwardly from the machine frame 10. Theouter end of link 159 is connected at 162 to an end of the longtraversing lever 163, and the outer end of link is connected at 164 to alink 165, the outer end of which is connected at 166 to an intermediateportion of the long lever 163. As a result of this link constructionrotation of the cam 156 at a uniform speed will traverse the outer endof the lever 163 back and forth at a uniform rate similar to thatproduced by the ordinary heart cam.

The fixed shaft 119 has slidably connected thereto a bridge bar 167 andthe outer end of lever 163 is connected to this bridge bar at 168 by along link 169. The outer ends of the bridge bar 167 are provided withthe clamping members 170 which are clamped about the long metal sleeves171 that are slidably mounted on the rods 14 of the main frame. Thearrangement is such that rotation of the cam 156 will slide thesesleeves 171 back and forth at a uniform rate of speed to operatetraverse mechanism associated with each package P. As a result of thisconstruction only one operating cam is required to operate the traversefor a number of packages.

The present traverse mechanism is constructed to accommodate theincrease in diameter of the packages throughout the winding operation,and also to move back and forth the full length of the package withoutproducing a change in the tension of the yarn being wound. This isaccomplished in accordance with the present invention by employing themechanism which is well shown in Fig. 10 and also in Figs. 13 to 16inclusive. Each traverse mecha nism comprises a long traversing leverthat extends downwardly from a supporting bracket 172. Such lever isformed of the arms 173 and 174- pivotally connected at 175. This leverformed of the connected arms 173 and 174 is pivoted to the bracket 172by the pivot pin 176 which is disposed relatively close to the yarnguiding pulley 13'. The lower end of each traverse lever 173, 174 ispivotally connected at 177 to a bracket 178 which is tightly clamped toa sliding tube 171 above mentioned. This bracket 178 has pivotallyattached thereto at 179 a short traverse arm 189. This arm iscontinuously urged towards the package P by a spring 181, and the outerend of this arm 13% is provided with a specially constructed guide 182the opposite ends of which are shaped like the outer end of a bullet.The central portion of this guide 182 is provided with an annular grooveas best shown in Fig. 14. The manner in which the bullet-like guide 182cooperates with a package P to guide the yarn c on to the rotatingpackage throughout its length is best shown in Fig. 22 of the drawing,wherein it will be seen that the construction is such that the guide 182may be traversed sufiiciently to bring the yarn to either end of thepackage, as shown in dot and dash lines in Fig. 22, while this guide 13continues to rest firmly against the outer cylindrical por tion of theyarn package.

In order to maintain uniform tension on the yarn traveling along thetraverse lever it is considered desirable to provide a yielding take-upin the form of the grooved roller 183 that is pivotally mounted at theouter curved end of a lever 18% which is pivoted at 185 to the arm 173.This lever 184 is continuously urged in the yarn tightening direction bya spring 185', and the angle through which the lever 184 may swing canbe controlled as desired by adjusting the stop screws 186 that cooperatewith the fixed pin 186, as shown in Fig. 15.

The foregoing makes clear how a number of yarn takeup packages P may bemounted in axial alignment so that one can be driven from another, andalso discloses how the traverse mechanism for these packages is operatedin timed relation with the rotation of packages, so that a predeterminednumber of helical windings of the yarn will be laid on the package asthe traverse mechanism travels from one end of the package to the other.This number of windings does not change as the package increases insize. If this precision winding mechanism is to receive yarn at theconstant delivery rate at which it is supplied by the ply-yarn producingspindles 52, it is necessary to correlate the winding speed of theprecision winder to that at which the ply-yarn is formed. The mechanismcontemplated by the present invention to accomplish this will now bedescribed.

Package governing drums The various packages P are supported, as abovestated, so that they normally rest upon power driven drums, and so thatthe supporting shafts 116 and 116 for these packages may swing upwardlythrough an arc as the packages increase in size. The function of thesegoverning drums, herein designated by 187 and 187 and upon which thetake-up packages P rest, is not to drive the packages, as in priorpractice, since each package is driven by a shaft 116 or 116, but thepurpose of these power driven drums 187 and 187 is to control or governthe speed of rotation of the take-up packages P. In practice it isdeemed advisable to slightly overdrive the packages P by the shafts 116or 116 and to use the frictional engagement of the outer periphery ofthe packages P with the drums 187 and 187' to retard the speed ofrotation of the take-up packages, in accordance with the tension of theyarn c being supplied to the packages, or if desired in accordance withthe increase in size of the packages.

In the apparatus shown in Figs. 1 to 23 inclusive the rate at which theyarn c is wound on to the various packages P is controlled by thetension of one of the yarns 0. Such control means is shown at the lefthand side of the machine illustrated in Fig. 1, and in the end view ofFig. 2, it is also shown in Figs. 17 and 18. In Fig. 2 there is shownthe variable speed gear casing 188 and the gears in this casing aredriven from the motor 17 by a chain 189 and sprocket 190. The poweroutput from this casing is from the sprocket 191 which drives a chain192. This chain drives a sprocket 193 at one side of the machine and 194at the other side of the machine. These two sprockets drive long shafts195' at each side of the machine and on which shafts are provided thedrums 187 and 187'. These drums are preferably made of a non-slipmaterial such as stainless steel or a rubber-resin composition that willprovide a good driving surface that engages the yarn packages P restingthereon. The drums 187 are driven by sprocket 193 and drums 187 aredriven by sprocket 194. The chain 192 travels in the direction indicatedby the arrow and engages a sprocket 196 to operate pawls that are bestshown in Fig. 17. The chain then passes around an idler and then travelsto the left a substantial distance to pass around an idler sprocket 197.The return run of this chain passes under the sprocket 194 187' in theright directions.

As long as the control for the variable speed mechanism within thecasing 188 is not changed the drums 187 and 187 will rotate at aconstant speed and through their surface contact with the yarn packagesP will cause these packages to rotate at the same surface speed. Theadjustable friction driving means for the shafts 116 and 116 make thiscontrol possible as it permits the speed of rotation of the shafts 116and 116' to decrease as the packages increase in size.

If a change in the winding speed is desired, this can be secured bychanging the setting of the variable speed mechanism in the casing 188and which is controlled by a shaft 198 projecting outwardly from thevariable speed casing. To this control shaft is rigidly secured aratchet wheel 199, which is well illustrated in Figs. 17 and 18 of thedrawing. This ratchet wheel is under the control of a pair of pawls 200which are actuated by eccentrics secured to the shaft 201. These pawlsare reciprocated relative to the ratchet teeth by the eccentrics justmentioned to slowly rotate the ratchet wheel 199. As long as these pawlsare held in an elevated position so that they do not engage the teeth ofthe ratchet wheel, the setting of the change gears will not be changed,but if the pawls are allowed to drop under the influence of gravity intoengagement with the ratchet wheel they will rotate the same. In theconstruction shown in the drawings these pawls are normally held in anelevated inactive position by a relatively long vertical rod 202 shownin Fig. 1 and which is under the control of the tension of a ply-yarn cthat is being produced by a spindle 52. This control rod 202 has itsupper end portion bent horizontally to support a grooved pulley 203about which a loop of the yarn c extends in a left hand direction fromthe guide rolls 204 (see Fig. 1). As long as the yarn 0 remains underconsiderable tension it will hold the rod 202 in the full line positionof Fig. l, and when the rod is in this position a laterally bent lowerend portion 205 of this rod will hold both pawls 200 in their elevatedinactive position. If the tension of the yarn 0 decreases then this rod202 will move to the left to the dot and dash line position of Fig. 1and this will move the lower end 205 of this rod out of engagement withthe pawls so that they can engage and rotate the ratchet 199, and adjustthe speed changing mechanism in a direction to increase the speed of thegoverning rolls 187 and 187. This rod 202 is continuously urged towardthe dot and dash line position by a bent blade spring 206, so that thepawls will become active if slackness occurs in the yarn 0.

Since the sprocket 14-4 which drives all of the packages P and thesprocket 143 which drives the traverse cam 156 are integrally connected,a constant ratio is maintained between the rotation of the packages andthe travel of the traverse mechanism. This ratio should bemathematically determined for the size of yarn being wound, so that theyarns will be laid side by side in contact with each other to produce apackage of maximum yardage for its size. Due to this fixed ratio betweenthe rotation of the packages and the traverse mechanism, the yarn willbe wound on the core with a long traverse as indicated by x when thepackage is small (see Fig. 23) and the angle of this traverse willdecrease as indicated by x as the package increases in size. As a resultof this change in angle as the package grows the amount of yarn wound onthe packaeg for a complete rotation of the governing drum 187 willdecrease as this angle decreases. Therefore, in order that the traversemechanism of the present invention may wind up the yarn c at a uniformdelivery speed, irrespective of the size of the package P, it isnecessary to provide means for gradually increasing the speed at whichthe drums 187 and 187' rotate as the package grows in size. This gradualincrease in speed is controlled by the tension of the yarn c which actsupon the rod 202 as above described to control the operation of thepawls 200, so that when the tension of the yarn 0 decreases the pawlswill engage and rotate the ratchet wheel 199. This 15 will operate thevariable speed mechanism within the casing 188 to increase the speed ofthe sprocket 191 and chain 192 to drive the governing drums'187 and 187'faster.

The rate at which the yarn c winds upon a package P as the package growsand the transverse angle changes, can be illustrated by a right angletriangle having a long side, a short side, and a hypothenuse; let thelength of the long side equal the circumference of the governing drum137, and let 1 equal the angle the helical winding forms with an end ofthe package at any selected size of the package. Then if the angle whichthe hypothenuse forms with the long side of the triangle equal z, thelength of the hypothenuse will equal the length of yarn wound on thepackage P for one complete rotation of the drum 187, assuming there isno surface slippage. From this triangle it will be seen that as thepackage increases in size and the angle 2 grows smaller, the amount ofyarn wound on the package for each rotation of the governing drum 137,will decrease slightly as the package increases in size, this is why itis necessary to speed up these drums as the packages grow.

The machine of the present invention is designed to build up largepackages P which may weigh 20 pounds or more, and since these packagesrest by gravity on the governing drums 187, 187' to maintain frictionaldriving relation therebetween, the pressure of the package P against adrum will greatly increase as the package grows in size, unless means isprovided to modify this action. In order to secure an approximateuniform pressure of the packages P upon the governing drums throughoutthe winding operation, spring means are provided for modifying thegravity pressure of the packages upon such drums as the packagesincrease in size. To this end each rocking arm 118 which is pivotallymounted upon the shaft 119 is provided at its outer end with a bearingbracket 117 that supports a shaft 116 or 115, and each arm 118 isprovided with a coiled spring 207 (see Figs. 1, 2 and 3). These springsare enclosed'in the U-shaped brackets 268 secured to the shaft 119, andthe lower end of each coiled spring acts upon a plunger 209 the lowerend of which seats in a recess formed in the upper end of a short arm21% that projects laterally in an upward direction from its swinging arm118. The arrangement is such that when an arm 113 swings upwardly as thepackage increases in size, the short arm 210 (see Fig. 2) will graduallymove from one side to the other of the dead center position determinedby the shaft 119. As a result when a package P is small, the spring 207will increase the downward pressure on the arms 118, and as v thepackage increases in size the spring will shift from one side of thedead center position to the other, to exert a lifting pressure upon thearms 11% and thereby absorb part of the weight of each package as itbuilds up in size.

The precision winding mechanism herein described perates in a highlysatisfactory manner to produce a firm, well shaped precision package P,and due to the mechanism herein described whereby the tension of one ofthe ply-yarns c controls the winding rate for all of the precisionpackages, the precision winding mechanism can be controlled to windyarns supplied thereto at a constant delivery rate, or at any otherdesired rate. It is highly desirable that the motor 16 that drives theply-yarn forming units and the motor 17 which operates all the precisionwinders be constant speed motors that rotate at a definite speed ratioone to the other. during the winding operation ply-yarn 0 should becomeexcessively slack or excessively tight, the swinging arm 95 which movessuch yarn along the tapered take-up rolls will operate an electricswitch within the box 113 to stop the entire machine. Also if thecooperating electric magnets 88 and 89 should fail to prevent thesupporting structure for the package A from rotating appreciably, thelower magnet 89 will drop and actuate the switch 9t) to stop the entiremachine.

In the embodiment of the invention illustrated the upper motor 16 drivesthe two-yarn plying spindles 56 disposed at one side of the machinethrough a belt 55, and the other two spindles 56 at the other side ofthe machine are driven through a belt as above pointed out. It isimportant that all the yarn plying spindles 56 be driven at the samespeed and no slippage occur between the belts and the driving and drivenpulleys. It is therefore desirable to provide the automatic belttightening mechanism shown in Fig. 2]. Each of these belts hasassociated therewith a free running belt tightening pulley 211 supportedby a bell-crank lever 212 that is pivoted upon the machine frame at 213.Each of these bell-crank levers has a laterally extending arm 214 whichcarries a roller at its outer end. Such roller is engaged by theinclined surface upon a member 215 which is slidably supported by itsshaft 215 that slides in a fixed bracket 217. The arrangement is suchthat the member 215 is continuously urged in the belt tighteningdirection by a coil spring 218, and the tapered surface, just mentioned,under the action of this spring continually presses the belt tighteningroller in the belt tightening direction and prevents it from recedingfrom the belt tightening position.

The entire machine of the present invention is designed to operate atrelatively high speeds, and as a result the yarn b will tend to balloonoutwardly to a large degree under its high rotating speed. The size ofthis balloon is controlled to a large degree by the tension maintainedthereon by the variable speed take-up mechanism for the yarn 0,comprising the tapered power driven rolls above described and associatedswinging arm 96. The action of this arm can be adjusted to increase ordecrease the tension upon the yarn c by adjusting the wing nut 98 tovary the pull of the spring 97 upon the lever 94. It is desirablehowever further to control the size of the balloon of the yarn b. Thisis accomplished in accordance with the present invention by employingthe mechanism best shown in Fig. 20 and which is provided with abell-shaped member 219 that is rigidly secured to the lower end of along hollow shaft 220 that is externally threaded throughout its length.This shaft is threadedly received in a sleeve 221 that is locked, by aset screw 222, in a hole formed in the above described supporting arm81. The lower portion of the threaded shaft 220 is surrounded by a coilspring 223 and one end of this spring is anchored to the arm 81 and theother is attached to the lower end of the shaft 220. The arrangement issuch that if the ballooning yarn b brushes against the inner lower edgeof the bell-shaped member 219, as shown in full lines in Fig. 20, thiswill rotate the shaft 220 in one direction to tension the spring 223, sothat this spring will turn the shaft 220 in the opposite direction whenthe balloon ceases to brush against the member 219. This causes thethreaded shaft 220 to move up or down and thereby vary the height of theeyelet 224 at the lower end of this shaft and which forms the apex forthe balloon. This control is sensitive and a slight movement, usuallymuch less than the bell movement indicated in Fig. 20, is suthcient tocontrol the size of the balloon and adjust for changes in the balloonsize caused by slight changes in the weight of the running yarn b. Thespring 223 operates to raise the apex 224 when the yarn ceases to brushagainst the bell 219, and when the yarn drags against the bell this willrotate the shaft 220 to lower the apex.

In operating the machine of the present invention, whether it has fouryarn forming units such as shown in the drawings or a much larger numberof units, it is desirable to have the motor or motors 16 for driving theyarn plying units controlled by a single switch so that all of thesemotors can be started or stopped simultaneously. As above stated all ofthe precision winding units irrespective of the number can be drivenfrom a single motor such as 17, which motor may be controlled by its ownswitch. It is found desirable however to place this motor 17 under thecontrol of the tension of the plytension of the running strand s.

yarn c which controls the position of the rod 202. This is readily doneby mounting on theleft hand end of the machine shown in Fig. I anelectric switchbox 225 having a push button 226 adapted to control themotor 17. This button is spring operated and will start the motor whenreleased and stop the motor when pushed inward. It is controlled by therod 202 and will stop the motor when the tension of the yarn moves thisrod from the dotted line position to the full line position of Fig.1.The operation of this button 226 is such that the yarn take-up motor 17will continue to run after the power to the motor 16 has been cut off,to thereby take up any slack produced in the ply-yarns while the rapidlyrotating spindles 56 coast to rest. As a result of this construction themotor 17 will continue to run until the tension of the yarn c pulls thelever 202 to the full line position, whereupon it will operate thebutton 226 to stop the motor 17. When the motor 16 is started to producethe plyyarns c, the motor 17 will start as soon as sufiicient slackoccurs in the controlling yarn c to allow the rod 202 to move to theleft in Fig. 1 and thereby allow the switch button 226 to move outwardlyand start the motor 17 to Wind up the yarns c.

Since the machine of the present invention is designed to wind largeprecision packages P, it is found highly desirable to slightlyover-drive these packages through the shafts 116 and 116 so as to windthe yarn c on the packages under considerable tension, and to providethe governing drums 187 and 187' to govern the speed at which thepackages rotate to conform to the speed at which the yarns c areprovided by the spindles 56. The speed at which the shafts 116 and 116'rotatewill decrease as the packages increase in size but the slip driveshown in Fig. 19 permits this.

Modified precision winding machine The machine of Figs. 24 and 25 has asuitable supporting frame comprising the end frames 227 and 228 whichare connected by the horizontally extending rails 229 and 230. Thismachine is shown as having only four precision winding units, two at oneside of machine and two at the other side. It will be understood,however, that a much longer machine having many winding units may besimilarly constructed.

The yarns or strands s to be rewound are conveniently supplied by therelatively large packages or spools 231 supported at each side of themachine. Each spool fits tightly on an incline supporting shaft 232 thatis rotatably mounted in a bearing box 233, and this box is supported bya bracket 234 mounted upon the portion 230 of the machine frame. Eachshaft 232 has rigidly secured thereto a braking collar 235, and thiscollar is engaged by a braking lever 236 that is pivoted to the frame234 at 237. The opposite end of the lever 236 has a spring 238 connectedthereto and adapted to press the, brake portion of the lever 236 againstthe brake collar 235. The purpose of this brake mechanism is to preventthe strand s from unwinding too freely from the spool 231. This strandupon leaving the spool passes downwardly to form a loop in which thefree running pulley 239 rests.

'This pulley is provided at the outer end of a slack-take-up lever 240.The other end of this lever is pivoted to the main frame. The lower endof the spring 238 is attached to an intermediate portion of this lever240 as shown. The arrangement is such that as the lever swingsdownwardly under the influence of gravity it will tension the spring 238and apply the brake to retard the rotation of the spool 231, then as thetension of the running strand s increases, this increase in tension willlift the lever 240 and reduce the brake action. In this manner thefloating lever 240, gives fairly accurate control. of the The strand spasses upwardly from the floating pulley 239 to a pulley 241, supportedby an upper rail 241 of the machine frame.

The running strand s passes from the pulley 241 inwardly to a take-uppackage which is designated by.

242 at the right side of the machine shown in Fig. 25, and by 242' atthe left side of this machine. Each package 242 rests upon a governingdrum 243, and each package 242 rests upon a governing drum 243, similarto the manner in which the packages P, above described, rest upon thegoverning drums E87 and 187. The packages 242 and 242 are wound on-heavypaper tubes, similar to the tubes above described. These tubes aresupported in alignment with each other and are driven by shafts 244 and244" which are power driven, in a manner to be described, from a centralshaft 245. Each shaft 244, 244 is mounted for swinging movement in anupward direction by swinging arms 246, 246' that operate in a similarmanner to the arms 118 of the previously described machine. These arms246, 246 are pivotally mounted upon a longitudinally extending centralshaft 247. Each swinging arm 246, 246' is provided at its outer end witha bearing bracket 249, and in such bearing bracket is mounted atelescopic stub shaft that is similar in construction and operation tothe tube supporting stub shafts above described. This stub shaft may bemoved into and out of supporting and driving engagement with a papertube by shifting the rod 250, which operates in an inclined slot 251formed in the bracket 249 similarly to the operation of the rod or leverabove described. The rotating central shaft 245 has secured thereto agear 252 which meshes with a larger gear 253 keyed to a shaft 254. Thisshaft 254 has one end journaled in the end frame 227 and has rigidlysecured thereto the large traversing cam 255 that operates traversingmechanism to be described. This gear drive between the traversing cam255 and the package driving shaft 245 maintains a constant fixedrelation therebetween so that the number of helical winds per revolutionof the package will remain the same throughout the winding of eachpackage 242 and 242. The cam 255 operates to slide back and forth thetraversing rod 256 atone side of the machine and a similar traversingrod 256' at the other side of the machine. Traversing movement isimparted to the rod 256 by a sliding block 257, disposed at one side ofthe machine to slide back and forth in the guiding bracket 258. Thisblock is rigidly secured to the rod 256 and has a round inner end 259that projects into the cam slot 260 of the cam 255. The traversing rod256' at the opposite side of the machine is similarly operated by asliding block 257'. The arrangement is such that as the cam 255 rotatesit will slide the rods 256 and 256' back and forth to lay the yarns orstrands s with a precision wind on the packages 242, 242. The cam shiftsthe rods in opposite direction, that is one moves to the right while theother moves to the left.

The traversing arms that guide the strands onto the packages are moresimple in construction in this modified machine of Figs. 24 and 25 thanin the main machine, In this modified machine each traversing rod 256 or256' has rigidly secured thereto and extending upwardly therefrom shortarms 261, and at the upper ends of these arms are pivotally secured thelinks 262 which carry the strand guides 263, that are similar inconstruction and operation to the strand guides 182, above described.The links 262 are continuously urged in a direction to hold the guide263 against a package, by spring means, not shown. The running yarn spasses upwardly about the pulley 241, and then inwardly through a threadtensioning eye 264, attached to the outer end of a coiled spring 265, itthen passes upwardly around a groove in the yarn guide 263 where it iswound onto the rotating package 242 or 242. The package 242, as abovestated, rests upon the governing rolls 243, and the packages 242 restupon the similar governing rolls 243'. The arrangement is such thatthese packages may move upwardly as indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 25as they increase in size. The governing drums 243 at one side of themachine are secured to and driven bythe long shaft 266, and thegoverning drums 243 are

